This invention relates to an inline final filter and more particularly to such a filter which can be combined, and form a part of, fluid tubing for administration of fluids such as intravenous fluids. The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing such a filter.
It has been conventional practice to filter intravenous as well as other parenteral solutions prior to the administration of such solutions to a patient. The purpose of such filtration has been to remove particulate matter and bacteria that may be present.
In recent years, there has been an attempt to place filtration units inline in the administration apparatus so that the fluids are filtered as they are being administered. Example of such inline units include those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,066,556 to Vaillancourt. It has been found however that these inline filtration units present problems in that they are bulky and expensive to manufacture.
According to this invention, there is provided a combined inline final filter and/or tubing unit for the filtration and administration of fluids which overcome the difficulties of the prior art and represents an advancement in the state of art by efficiently providing filtration in an inline filter that may be no bulkier than the administration tubing itself, will be easy to prime, and will prevent air blockage irrespective of position.